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Oswego
Lighthouse model on display at Canal Commons as part of National
Lighthouse Day celebration In
an effort to celebrate National Lighthouse Day, which takes place on
August 7 each year, a wood model of the Oswego Lighthouse will be on
display at Canal Commons from Thursday, August 4 through Thursday,
August 11. George Nesbitt originally constructed the lighthouse in 1994
for the Port of Oswego Authority. Ted
Panayotoff, the chairman of the Oswego Lighthouse Development Committee,
a group that is working to restore the Oswego Lighthouse as part of a
partnership between the City of Oswego and the H. Lee White Marine
Museum, will be available at the Canal Commons display on Sunday, August
7 and during the farmers’ markets on Thursday, August 4 and Thursday,
August 11 to offer insights about the lighthouse. “The
committee and I are pleased to celebrate National Lighthouse Day as we
continue our efforts to restore and preserve the Oswego Lighthouse and
make it a place where educational, cultural and recreational programs
will be offered to the public,” Panayotoff said. The
lighthouse, which was built in 1934, and the only remaining lighthouse
of four built in Oswego starting in 1822, has been vacant since 1968.
Initial projects toward the restoration of the lighthouse began in 2010
and will continue in coming years. National
Lighthouse Day takes place on the date when President George Washington
signed the Lighthouses Act of 1789 into law. The Act was put into place
to help regulate and encourage the trade and commerce of the new nation,
and extended federal control and funding to lighthouses that states had
previously administered. This demonstrates the importance the early
American government placed on funding lighthouses to help contribute to
the entire country’s economy, and not just the port were the
lighthouse was located or the owner of the ship that used the
lighthouses.
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May, 2009: The City has officially taken ownership of the Lighthouse. The deed was filed Friday, May 8 and an announcement was in the Post-Standard Tuesday. Renovations are needed before there can be public access, which will be problematical when it does happen. For more information on the lighthouse's condition and plans for its future, see the Post-Standard article. An interesting article, written by one of our Museum Members, recently appeared in Lighthouse Digest; check it out at http://www.lighthousedepot.com/lite_digest.asp?action=get_article&sk=03072&bhcd2=1253728639
FAQ:
Coordinates: WGS-84 (GPS) 43°28′24″N 76°31′01″W / 43.47332°N 76.51682°W / 43.47332; -76.51682 Year first lit: 1934 Automated: 1968 Foundation: Concrete/masonry caisson Construction: Steel and cast iron Height: 57 feet (17.37 meters) Original lens: Fourth Order Fresnel lens - now on display, upstairs, at the Museum. Current lens: Modern optics Characteristic: Alternating red and OFF flash every 5 seconds USCG number: 7-2080 [2] (Taken from Wikipedia and verified through various other sources)
2008: The H. Lee White Marine Museum worked in cooperation with the City of Oswego as the City considered acquisition of the Oswego West Pierhead Lighthouse. Upon a unanimous vote by the City Common Council, Acting Mayor Randolph Bateman forwarded a Letter of Interest to the U.S. General Services Administration representative within the required sixty-day response time for items of disposal. Upon acceptance of the Letter of Interest, the City then had ninety days in which to develop a master plan for maintenance and care of the lighthouse and meet GSA and SHPO requirements for such properties.
The Oswego West Pierhead Lighthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
A separate fund is being created for those interested in contributing to this effort and will be administered by the Marine Museum at this time. Contact the Museum office for more information. (315) 342.0480.
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43°28′24″N
76°31′01″W /
43.47332°N
76.51682°W /
43.47332; -76.51682